Is this what Monday mornings are like for scifi writers?

In keeping with the disappointing scifi discussion I started last week, my feed updated this morning with a painfully dreadful post on the scifi/fantasy novelists blog from David B. Coe. In it, Coe talks about what it’s like to be a midlist author.

I’m not really going anywhere with this post. I have a book to finish and page proofs to read through. I woke up this morning knowing that it was my day to post on the blog, and this is what I was thinking about. I’m in the middle. Of everything, it seems like. And right now it’s all feeling like bit of a slog. I’d love to finish with something uplifting and hopeful, filled with determination and a promise that I will eventually have that huge success. But this is a tough business, and I understand that we can’t all be bestsellers and household names. Someone has to fill the midlist, and I’m not willing to give up my position here if it means moving anywhere but up. It’s not a bad place to be; not by any means. Let’s be honest, though: No writer begins his or her career striving for the middle.

There it is, folks. Most people aspiring to be an author, including myself, will end up right here. In the middle. Existing, comfortably, but always hoping for more.

To be honest, isn’t that part of the beauty and the curse of the human machine? We are beings of hope and desire, always grasping at the next rung on some mythical ladder of prominence. Think about it: at one point, Coe aspired to be nothing more than an author. The fates granted him that one wish, and he became an author. Now, he hopes for more notoriety. How many of the rest of us in his position would desire the same thing? And what if someday he hits upon a singular radical concept that propels him to fame and fortune and household namery (that’s not a word – don’t look it up)? Would it not be natural for him to then wish for yet another chance to strike at success, and continue his ascension up the ladder?

Seeing a post like this reminds me of one of the stark truths to being an author: it is a job. It is work. And just like the guy stuck in middle management of a small marketing team for Global Corporation XYZ, just being an author does not guarantee enormous wealth and success. It’s a job. And sometimes, just working harder doesn’t necessarily get you any higher up on the ladder.

It’s a fairly dark and depressing post that Coe made today, but I’m really glad he had the guts to write it.

I am a poor excuse for a fan of science fiction

So, nominees for the Hugo awards have been announced. Here’s my thoughts:

Nominees for Best Novel

  • The Yiddish Policemen’s Union Michael Chabon (I haven’t read this one yet)
  • Brasyl Ian McDonald (haven’t gotten to this one, either)
  • Rollback Robert J. Sawyer (nope, haven’t read it)
  • The Last Colony John Scalzi (I’ve read Old Man’s War and Ghost Brigades…but not this one)
  • Halting State Charles Stross (you guessed it; haven’t read it)

And I’m not even touching novellas and short stories. Seriously, am I that far behind in my science fiction reading? My reading stack contains books that were nominated for Nebulas and Hugos back in 2005 and 2006.

I blame my slippage on apportioning too much of my time to the worlds of Harry Potter and the Starks, respectively, not that I begrudge any time spent within those wonderful fictional universes. It was just proportionately misaligned.

In the time I was trudging through Half-Blood Prince and Storm of Swords, amazing science fiction novels were gracing the shelves, and I was carelessly ignoring them. Either I’m a fool, or a drone, in any case, I have a monumental task ahead of me. I need to get caught up on all of the fantastic science fiction that’s been written in the past couple of years, starting with the Hugo nominees for this year.

Any other suggestions? Yikes. I don’t even know where to go next.

Wii to become the de-facto home for new Tales games?

It was tough going to get this Famitsu article translated, but some enterprising Tales forum members were up to the task. One nearly inconsequential bullet point actually becomes a major supporting concept for my theory that the Wii will replace the PS2 as a home for jRPG goodness. Namco Bandai has apparently announced that after this year–which will see a new Tales entry on the 360 (Vesperia) and the DS (Hearts)–further “mothership” Tales titles will debut on the Wii. Mothership titles in the Namco world are considered brand new entries in the Tales universe, and do not include sequels, spin-offs, or remakes.

To have such overwhelming support from a premiere jRPG publisher as Namco Bandai is particularly telling. Now we just need to see Square Enix fall into line, and the movement will be complete. However, with Square Enix showing much more interest in the PS3 and the DS than anything else, I don’t actually see this happening.

Just got myself a Nyko wireless nunchuk

The Amazon Gold Box deal at 8PM (central time) tonight was a Nyko wireless nunchuk for the Wii. I’ve been interested in this peripheral since it was first announced, but the steep $35 introductory price frightened me away. The Gold Box deal knocked $10 off the price, and Amazon had apprently taken off an extra buck somewhere else in the process, leaving me with a $24 nunchuk, and free shipping. Just four measly dollars more than a regular “wired” nunchuk. That four dollars is a easy cost to associate with the freedom of a wireless peripheral, isn’t it? I think so.

The deal is still going on, for those interested. I’ll have a review just as soon as it shows up on my doorstep.

Is offline access on an online document editor important?

For those interested, I posted a follow-up comment over on FriendFeed to my Google Docs / Buzzword post.

One important aspect I forgot to include in that post: offline access. GDocs has offline doc sync through Gears. You would think Buzzword would be a shoe-in for offline access through Adobe’s AIR platform, but so far, that’s not the case. Maybe they’re working on it, and I would assume they are. But at this moment, GDocs has offline, Buzzword doesn’t, and that matters.

Ryan Stewart from Adobe (FriendFeed | blog) commented there that they are working on an AIR version of Buzzword, just as I had surmised. It makes sense to me that offline access should be mandatory, but is it really that important to anyone else? Though I mainly work online whenever possible, I always rely heavily on offline sync to keep backups of documents and to have access to them when the internet isn’t readily available. I missed this functionality the most I switched to Buzzword.

Right now, I desperately need a fast-loading system and offline access more than a gorgeous interface (and no, Jonas, that doesn’t help, but thanks for your input). Google Docs fits that bill nicely, for the moment, despite its horrendously sterile and uninviting interface. When Adobe gets the framework loading quickly and offline sync via AIR working, I’ll be jumping ship that very day.

What does everyone else think?

Moving back to Google Docs from Buzzword

I’ve been flirting with Buzzword since just prior to its acquisition by Adobe and inclusion into their online office suite. The interface is gorgeous and the amount of functionality is astounding for an online document editor. However, all that sparkle comes with a cost. Every time I go to Buzzword to work on one of my documents, it takes two to three minutes to load. It first loads the “framework” then it loads the “organizer”. That’s all done in about two minutes. Then I’m greeted with my list of documents. I click on the document I want to work on, and it’s another minute and a half of loading the “editor” and then the fonts before I can begin work.

Now, don’t take this criticism as hatred. I absolutely adore this product that is lovingly draped in an essence of style and charisma. There are very few online products where I can honestly claim that. But the unnecessary load times are turning me off.

I’m currently in the process of moving my documents back to their old home. Of course, Google Docs isn’t a bed of roses, either. The Google online document editor is just so frustratingly utilitarian. I’m a fiction writer first and foremost, and I need a document editor that is not going to act as a roadblock to my creative instincts. The sleek black and neon green Buzzword interface was perfectly suited to helping me stay zoned into a particular creative mood as it struck. The sterile white and pale blue of Google Docs tries every time to convince me that I should be working on tax forms instead of fiction.

The goggles. They do nothing.

So, for the time being, I’m back in the Google family for yet another product, at least until something sexier comes along. I’ve already tried Writer from BigHugeLabs and didn’t like how constricted the interface was. Are they any other online editor suggestions people have that can keep my creative spirit kicking?

What do YOU do on the Fourth of July?

I have a few quiet moments today amidst the chaos of our average July 4th holiday festivities. A few moments in which to sit on my porch and post to my blog. Exciting, isn’t it?

This July 4th found me, my oldest son, and my neice all on a parade float together. We were promoting our church’s Christian concert series, doing so by bringing Rock Band instruments up onto a trailer and blasting Fireflight music while rocking out the entire length of the parade route. And folks, if you haven’t seen a 5-year-old rock out on a fake plastic guitar, you have not lived. Pictures are forthcoming! I obviously didn’t get an opportunity to ake any myself, seeing as how I was on the float. I did, however, play some pretty mean pretend drums.

The rest of the morning and early afternoon was spent at my parents house with about a thousand of our closest relatives feasting on approximately eighteen different kinds of yellow foods. There was corn casserole, macaroni casserole, corn AND macaroni casserole, several potato salads, and lots and lots of pasta salads. Thank god dad grilled some beer brats or else it might have been unbearable.

Now, the youngest one is taking his mid-day nap, and the oldest boy is over at a friend’s house for a birthday party. The wife and I are just relaxing on a suspiciously cool, quiet, breezy afternon. A rarity in these parts, but a welcome one nonetheless.

This evening will be fireworks at the football field. Then a mad scramble to get the kids to bed before they explode themselves after such a long day.

The wife’s mother will be visiting tomorrow and staying through the weekend, so I might not make it back online until Monday. In the meantime, let me know: what do YOUR July 4th festivities include? Feel free to comment here, or over on FriendFeed where this post will eventually end up.

Cheers!

Nerdflood: part of the elite tech blogging empire?

I never take a moment to consider exactly who is going to read my blog when I create a new post for Nerdflood. Oftentimes, I don’t think about the fact that people beyond my close friends and family read this blog; and even my close friends and family don’t read it all that much (Mom? Mom, are you there? Hello, mom?)

But my morning blog stats check revealed that there are a few people not related to me (that I’m aware of anyways) that for some reason have decided to subscribe to this blog. One of those people is reknowned tech blogger Louis Gray (FriendFeed | Twitter).

Today Nerdflood made Louis’ list of “five obscure blogs that sparkle“. A couple of comments on this.

1) I’m obviously deeply honored by this. Louis is well-respected in the tech/social media blogging circles. His philosophy reminds me of my own ideals back when I was a webcomics blogger on the Evil Network: highlight the cool stuff; don’t tear anyone down.

2) I’m among great company. I’m not going to start listing them all because I’m going to miss someone whose blog I really enjoy and I’ll kick myself about it. But check out Franklin Pettit’s blog post about getting “Louis Grayed” along with me, and you’ll get a great sampling of the excellent Z-lister content out there.

3) Not only is Nerdflood “obscure”, it also “sparkles”. The same can be said about me (after I’ve had a chance to shower and down my first Mountain Dew of the morning, of course).

4) This is second time in just the past two months that Louis has highlighted a central Iowa blogger. Last month he shined a well-deserved light on LiveCrunch, a blog that comes out of Des Moines. Surely we are poised to take over the world.

I’ll try my hardest not to disappoint, though you may find yourself ignoring 4 out of every 5 blog posts I do. You might also noticed that I rather drastically altered my web surfing habits recently, so the focus of my content is likely to change. But I tell you this, regardless of what I talk about here, I will try my hardest to entertain and inform.

So, who wants to see a picture of my wife’s broken toe? Nah, I’ll save that for a later post.

Kung Fu Panda versus Wall-E

Two excellent CGI movies have come out this summer, both from completely different computer animation studios.

Kung Fu Panda. From Dreamworks Animation, the studio that brought us Shrek (all three of them), Shark Tale, Madagascar, Over the Hedge, and the Bee Movie. Mostly “meh” movies, some good, some not. Kung Fu Panda featured the voices of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, and Jackie Chan.

Wall-E. From Pixar, the studio that brought us everything great about computer animation: Toy Story (both of the them), Monsters, Inc., the Incredibles, Cars, and Ratatouille. Mostly fantastic movies, pretty much each and every one. Wall-E featured the voices of essentially nobodies, with the exception of Sigourney Weaver and John Ratzenberger. There was very little speaking involved, so this isn’t surprising to see.

This however, might be surprising: between the two movies, I preferred Kung Fu Panda.

To me, it was the more entertaining of the two. It had characters that I (and my kids) could better relate to. It had a story that was more compelling. It had much, much more action and intensity. And, as far as I’m concerned, more humor.

Now, that doesn’t mean that Wall-E was horrible – not by any stretch of the imagination. It was a wonderful, warm, captivating film. The two movies are very close in quality in my mind. On a scale of 1 to 10, Wall-E would rate a 7 while Kung Fu Panda would garner an 8.

I think in a lot of people’s minds, any Pixar film automatically gains additional awesome points just by virtue of being a Pixar film. Because of Dreamworks’ lackluster history, films from that studio might lose awesome points by the same criteria. But as far as I’m concerned, even additional Pixar awesome points doesn’t bring Wall-E up to Kung Fu Panda’s level.

Am I alone in thinking this? Is it impossible to compare the two movies because their style and presentation are so drastically different? Should every Pixar movie simply win by default?

Could the Wii be a haven for Japanese RPGs?

The cost of developing titles for the PS3 is extraordinary, and no developer in Japan worth their salt will bother to even acknowledge the 360. Where does that leave the jRPG developer? With the appearance of games like Arc Rise Fantasia and confirmation that Swords of Legendia is an actual game; combined with all the Wii RPG games I talked about previously, signs are definitely pointing to jRPG development gradually shifting from the PS2 over to the Wii.

More and more, I’m starting to watch the developers and publishers to see where their support is moving. Marvelous Entertainment is one company that appears to be heavily favoring the Wii and the DS. There is a Rune Factory game in development for the Wii that looks interesting, in addition to the previously-mentioned Arc Rise Fantasia. They’re also responsible for publishing Vanillaware’s Oboro Muramasa Yōtōden, Cing’s Little King’s Story, and, one of my favorites, No More Heroes (admittedly, none of which are jRPGs). I’m also keeping a close eye on Namco Bandai, the developer/publisher of Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, Swords of Legendia, and Fragile: Farewell Ruins of the Moon. Namco created a significant slew of titles for the PS2, including the entire Tales series and the excellent Xenosaga games. What else could they possibly have slated?

And, of course, you can’t discuss jRPGs without mentioning Square Enix. Rumors are casting doubt on whether or not our highly-anticipated Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: the Crystal Bearers will ever see the light of day. Beyond that, all the Wii has seen from them is an abysmal Dragon Quest game, Chocobo’s Dungeon, and the WiiWare My Life as a King. Hardly any reason to get excited. Plus, if any Japanese developer has the capital to get projects moving on the PS3, it’s Square Enix. And with their continued support of the 360 through Infinite Undiscovery and Star Ocean 4, they seem committed to bringing quality jRPGs to everyone BUT Wii owners. Could Kingdom Hearts move to the Wii? It would seem to have the right audience for such a series, though the DS appears to be getting a lot of Square Enix attention these days, so I have to lean towards “no”. The future appears bleak on that front, but maybe that reprieve will allow other, less notable developers to garner some much-needed attention.

Overall, I would say there’s definitely potential for the Wii to become much more than it is now as far as jRPGs are concerned. I’ll be watching this year’s E3 with anticipation, hoping to see more news squeak out that may hint at things to come.